There’s a decent weekend’s racing in store with jumping action taking place at Ascot, Haydock and Huntington. There are 3 flat all weather meets at Lingfield, Kempton and Wolverhampton, the latter 2 going ahead under lights. Cheltenham’s Gold Cup hero Kauto Star returns to action in a potentially mouth watering renewal of the Betfair Chase. Can he fend of the Irish challenge of Notre Pere?

With the ground at Haydock currently riding soft (heavy in places) one has to fancy Notre Pere to turn over Kauto Star in the Betfair Chase. Notre Pere will jump and stay every inch of the stamina sapping 3 miles round Haydock but will Kauto Star? I can see this race turning into a right old slog and I’m going to put forward Notre Pere to turn over last years Cheltenham hero.

Its not often you see the great Ruby Walsh riding for Nicky Henderson and for that reason alone you have to fancy Burton Point (14:20). He won very nicely 10 days ago in a beginners chase and reverts to hurdles today, which would be my only concern. He has a nice racing weight, handles testing conditions and has Ruby on board. He should run a big race.

In the 13:30 at Ascot I’m going to take a chance with a potentially big priced horse in a 12 runner field. Another Storm looked like a horse on the up last year, winning her last two starts before taking a summer break. With Daryl Jacob, Grand National winning jockey in the plate I think more may be to come from this 7 year old mare. An Each Way selection.

A.P McCoy goes to Ascot to ride the Cheltenham Ballymore Properties runner up - Karabak. This horse always gave me the impression that another summer under his coat would bring out the best of him. He had top class form as a novice finishing second to the classy Mikael D’haguenet. Nicky Henderson’s Zaynar will be hard to turn over but with McCoy vs Tinkler in a drive there is always going to be one winner. Also Karabak is 2 years Zaynar’s elder with more experience, another huge positive.

Finally in the Amlin 1965 Chase another Cheltenham Festival runner up runs in the form of Voy Por Ustedes. It’s hard to believe Alan Kings stable star is only 9 and potentially still improving. It’s his first run of the season but he should nb good enough to beat this field.

Horse Racing Betting - Horse Racing Results

England v All Blacks Betting

Very hard to see Engerland doing a job on the All Blacks. Poor Martin Johnson essentially has a group of players that are not great and he is telling them to do stuff and just can’t quite understand why they are not able to do it.

Watching him in the stand is quite funny actually. He can’t believe what his team are doing. Johnson is used to playing with World class players and playing on brilliant teams, whether it was for club or country, but now he finds himself landed amongst a bunch of players that only 2 would be guaranteed a place on the Irish team (Wilkinson is a different class to O’Gara and Shaw is a different class to O’Callaghan). So the problem Johnson has is that he is 13 players short of beating Ireland which means that he is probably 15-20 points short of getting close to NZ.

Wilkinson aside, there is nothing in the English backline that worries the All Blacks. Moody will run around like a lunatic all day and Shaw will carry and hit, but the All Blacks can easily handle that.

Carter will be made look far better than Wilkinson tomorrow as he will get more ball and will have far better options outside him. If it was the other way around Wilkinson would look far better than Carter.

Prediction - NZ to win by 15.
 

Other International Matches

Elsewhere if Australia get the same turnover count as they did against Ireland they will beat the Scots. Ireland will beat what looks like a very unorganised Fiji team. The Welsh will win a bruiser against the Argentinians and the Boks will get their first win against the Italians. The French will not be as up for the Samoa game like they were last week against the Boks, but will still win.
 
Ireland to beat Fiji by 18
Australia to beat Scotland by 11
Wales to beat Argentina by 8
SA to beat Italy by 15
France will beat Samoa by 10

Following a controversial round of World Cup play-off matches we return to Premier League action this weekend with Manchester City’s trip to Liverpool the stand out game.

Both side’s are not in the best of form at the minute and despite suggestions before the season started that a title challenge was not beyond either neither side look poised to make that move.

City lie one place ahead of their hosts in sixth spot but are on a run of five successive draws in the Premier League. Meanwhile Rafa Benitez’s side have not won in five attempts and are in danger of losing touch with the rest of the big four.

Mark Hughes has recorded just four away wins in 25 attempts as manager of the Eastlands outfit and a trip to Anfield would probably not be high on the list of places you would expect this to improve. Carlos Tevez scored at Anfield for Manchester United last season and is a 9/1 shot to open the scoring on Saturday.

With both side’s in the need of the win I can see this being quite an open encounter and you can back Liverpool to secure a 3-2 victory at 20/1.
Remember if Steven Gerrard scores the last goal, Paddy Power will refund all losing 1st /last goalscorer, correct score & scorecast singles on the match.
 
In the other North West Derby of the weekend Manchester United host Everton at Old Trafford. The champions are in third spot and despite some indifferent away form have five wins and one draw from their six home games this campaign.

The Toffees have had a difficult time against United in recent times and since the evolution of the Premier League in 1992 have just one win in 17 attempts on United’s patch.

Michael Owen is a 5/1 chance to open the scoring against his boyhood side while I also fancy Utd to secure a 2-1 win at 7/1.
 
Elsewhere Aston Villa travel to Burnley who hold an impressive record of 15 points from a possible 18 at Turf Moor this year. Villa do seem to score a number of goals from set-pieces though and with six goals coming from headers this season I like Carlos Cuellar to score first at 33/1.

Bolton face a Blackburn side who have suffered five defeats away from home this season conceding on average over three goals a game. Bolton are 20/1 to keep this run going with a 3-0 home win.

At the KC Stadium, Hull take on West Ham with both side’s at the wrong end of the table. The corresponding encounter last year saw Jimmy Bullard suffer a serious injury on his Tigers debut. Bullard is 12/1 to make amends this time round by scoring first.

Football Betting - Premier League Betting ]]> /betting/football/premier-league/premier-league-goalscorers-and-correct-scores-nov-20th.html/feed/ /betting/previews/betting-tips-playing-the-odds-nov-19th.html /betting/previews/betting-tips-playing-the-odds-nov-19th.html#comments Thu, 19 Nov 2009 11:49:03 +0000 Dai Gallagher /betting/?p=589

Betting Review

Stoke City have a terrific home record in front of passionate supporters and whilst they may not play the prettiest football, they are good at grinding out wins against their near rivals. Portsmouth look a shambles of an outfit at the moment and so at evens I have to side with Tony Pulis’ side with home advantage.

Sporting Gijon are nestled seventh in La Liga and have made steady progress over the last three seasons. They are a formidable side and face newly promoted Xerez at La Chapin who have struggled to adapt to life in the top flight. Gijon are a really solid team and so I expect them to see of a poor Xerez side.

The double pays around 9/2 which looks like terrific value to me.
Football Betting
 

1pt each way James Wade to win the grand Slam of Darts at 8/1 (e/w 1/3 places 1,2)

However, as his 5-1 thrashing at the hands of Dutchman Vincent van der Voort in his final group match proved, Taylor can be beaten. With each-way betting also available it is also a case of finding the player most likely to face Taylor in Sunday’s final.

James Wade has been improving over recent months and proved he is in great form by scoring the highest average of the tournament so far (108.9) when rallying from 3-0 down to defeat Robert Thornton on Tuesday.

With his draw seemingly quite straightforward (the most difficult opponent he is likely to face is Gary Anderson or Terry Jenkins) I fancy Wade to reach the final for at least an each-way payout.
Darts Betting
 

0.5 pts each way Robert Allenby to win the Dubai World Championship at 45/1 (e/w ¼ place 1,2,3,4,5)

One such man is Australian Robert Allenby who followed his third place in the World Match Play with sixth in the Castello Masters and a tied 23^rd in the HSBC World Championships a week ago. He has had a very consistent season winning almost two million dollars and can influence the destination of the Race to Dubai title with a good performance at the Earth course.
Golf Betting
 

0.5 pts patent (total 3.5pts) - Notre Pere in Betfair Chase (2/1), Treacle in Troytown Chase (6/1) and Offshore Account in Becher Chase (8/1) at combined odds of approx 189/1

Treacle, the Munster National winner can win the €52,080 Troytown chase and follow up his Limerick win over Dashing George and Paddy Pub and I like the look of Offshore Account at around 8/1 in the Becher Chase at Aintree.
Horse Racing Betting
 
Performance to date: +5.25 points

Whilst this year may be the first ATP World Tour Finals, the tournament has actually been existence in various guises since Stan Smith won the Masters Grand Prix event back in 1970. The event became the Tennis Masters Cup in 2000 where it first appeared in its current format and from 2009 it moves to the O2 Arena London and will combine both the ATP singles and doubles events.

Qualification for the event this year went down to the final tournament in Paris with the Spaniard Fernando Verdasco claiming the final spot at the expense of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. He joins Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Juan Martin del Potro, Novak Djokovic and Nikolay Davydenko at the showpiece event. A late addition to the tournament was Swede Robin Soderling who was called up after world number six Andy Roddick was forced to withdraw with a knee injury.

Unsurprisingly, the Swiss champion has been installed as 5/2 favourite for the title. Federer has won the end of season event in four of the last six years but went out in the group stages in 2008 when a combination of injury and defeats to Gilles Simon and Andy Murray eliminated the former champion.

The former Masters champion has had a good 2009 reaching each of the four Grand Slam finals. Defeats to Nadal in Australia and del Potro in the US were compensated by a first victory at Roland Garros and a sixth Wimbledon title. A surprise early defeat to Julien Benneteau in Paris wasn’t the perfect preparation for this event although he has probably the slightly easier of the two groups. He meets Murray, Verdasco and del Potro in the group stages.

Djokovic is on a rich run of form and comes to London as the reigning Masters champion and second favourite. His win in Paris in a terrific final means confidence is high and he should be able to see of the challenges of Nikolay Davydenko and Robin Soderling in Group B. He also beat Nadal in Paris last week and so should have nothing to fear from facing the former world number One. I like the 6/5 available on Djokovic reaching the final.

Nadal is a 13/2 shot for the title and the Spaniard can also retain the world number One spot with a good performance at the O2. However, he’s still returning from injury and even though he saved five set points in a gutsy performance against Nicolas Almagro in Paris he went out to Djokovic in the semi-finals and I can’t help feeling that the Spaniard would have to be in peak condition to win in London.

So what of the chances of a ‘home’ winner? Andy Murray is 4/1 for the title and with Federer, del Potro and Verdasco in his group he has every chance of reaching the semi-finals. As with Nadal, Murray has recently been forced to sit out several tournaments through injury but the Scotsman did make a winning return when he beat Verdasco and Mikhail Youzhny on the way to the Valencia Open title.

Despite a hard fought victory over James Blake in Paris, a tired Murray went out in the third round to Radek Stepanek, although the Scotsman was not too upset with the defeat. He told the BBC “I won the tournament last week and played a couple of matches here too, so the preparation for London has been perfect, it’s been exactly what I needed, and I’m not going to dwell on the loss of that match.”

Murray showed he is a tough competitor and his win in Valencia proved he is free of the wrist injury that has dogged him over recent months. He looked fatigued in Paris, however, and I think the lack of recent tournaments might rule the Scotsman out of this one.

Of the ‘outsiders’ Verdasco is 33/1 and Soderling are 25/1. I can’t see Verdasco getting past both Murray and Federer whereas a fit, in-form Soderling might have a chance in Group B if he can beat Davydenko and come up against a not 100% fit Nadal. Del Potro is also going to have to repeat his US Open heroics to qualify from Group B although I wouldn’t be tempted by the 5/4 on the Argentine progressing from the group stage.

Whilst the form player entering the tournament might be the Serbian Novak Djokovic, I can’t look past Roger Federer to win his fifth Masters title. The Wimbledon champion has been terrifically consistent this year reaching all four Grand Slam finals and with a great record in this competition he can see off all comers to become only the second player after Ivan Lendl to hold, lose and then regain the ATP World Tour Champion title.

Tennis Betting

After the international break the hurly-burly of domestic football returns this weekend in two intriguing Liverpool versus Manchester match-ups.

Much has been made of Liverpool’s recent form with only an ill-deserved penalty rescuing the Reds from yet another embarrassing defeat against Birmingham City last time out. Rafa Benitez’s side host Manchester City on Saturday who have stumbled in recent weeks after a promising start. Even though their form is ‘awful’ (so says Glen Johnson) they should be able to do enough to beat City at 4/5.

In the other North West derby, Everton travel to Old Trafford to face a Manchester United side still raging against their unfortunate defeat at Chelsea last time out. Everton haven’t hit the heights of their last couple of seasons so far this season but with United failing to fire on all cylinders either it might be a closer match than some expect.

Bolton Wanderers host a third North West derby on Sunday lunchtime as they face Blackburn Rovers at the Reebok Stadium. This is hardly likely to be an open game full of attacking panache and be prepared for ninety minutes of gutsy, full-throttle attrition. I’d be tempted by the 2/1 on a Rovers win.

In one of the least glamorous pieces of TV scheduling possible, the main Sunday afternoon fare comes from the Britannia Stadium as Stoke City take on rock-bottom Portsmouth. Pompey have improved slightly of late but Stoke have an excellent home record and look terrific value at evens.
Premier League betting
 

Championship Betting

Much has been made of Ipswich Town’s disappointing start to the Championship season with the Suffolk team languishing in 23^rd place in the table. However, Roy Keane’s team have only lost six of their sixteen league games to date, the same number as high flying Middlesbrough. The Tractor Boys are only a couple of wins away from the security of mid-table which is where Sheffield Wednesday sit after a solid, if unspectacular, start to the season.

Ipswich are actually unbeaten in five games, four of which finished in 1-1 draws. The Owls’ form is up and down and so at evens I’d side with the home team to give the Portman Road faithful something to cheer.
Championship Betting
 

SPL Betting

It’s been an interesting season in the Scottish Premier so far as neither Celtic nor Rangers have been able to put together anything approaching a run of form. Tony Mowbray’s side have been particularly frustrating, never more so than their crazy 3-3 draw at Falkirk last time out having been both 1-0 and 3-2 in front.

The league leaders travel to Dundee United in Sunday’s lunchtime kick-off and a win for the home side would take them to within two points of Celtic at the top of the table with a game in hand. Good away wins at Aberdeen and Kilmarnock in recent matches have carried the Terrors into a European place and they look great value at 7/2 to see off a misfiring Celtic side.
Scottish Premier Betting
 

FAI Cup Final

Less than two years into their existence, Sporting Fingal are looking forward to their first Cup Final this weekend as the first division side take on Sligo Rovers at the Tallaght stadium. Sligo Rovers have reached the final for the first time since 1994 and with not only the Cup but a Europa League qualifying place up for grabs they’ll be keen to put in a good performance.

It’s been a fairytale run for Liam Buckley’s side but with the good striking form of Matthew Blinkhorn and Rafael Cretaro, Rovers look good value at 6/5.
FAI Cup Final Betting
 

La Liga Betting

Despite their defeat to village team Alcorcon in the Copa del Rey, Real Madrid sit just a point behind league leaders Barcelona in the La Liga table. Madrid have the easier of the two fixtures this weekend as they host a Racing Santander side sitting just outside the relegation places. I can’t see anything other than a Madrid win, even at 1/5.

Barcelona travel to the San Mames to face at Athletic Bilbao side who have won their last two games and sit comfortably in mid-table. Bilbao isn’t the easiest ground on which to get a result and with key Barca defender Eric Abidal likely to miss the game it might be worth a small investment on the home side at a standout 5/1.
La Liga Betting

At teatime on Saturday evening, after England had spent ninety minutes vainly chasing a talented Brazilian XI around the Doha pitch, it would be fair to say we all got a bit of a reality check about Rooney and Co’s World Cup chances. With the tournament just seven months away, Fabio Capello still has work to do as on the evidence of Saturday’s display, England don’t look much like World Cup finalists to me.

England are clearly a better side than they were when the Italian took the job. Saying that, the qualifying group for South Africa couldn’t have been much more straightforward and you’d have backed even Steve McLaren to get England through a group where the Ukraine were their closest rivals.

However, whilst England might have sailed through qualifying, friendly results against top sides have been disappointing. A good 2-1 win in Berlin and a 2-2 draw with Holland in Amsterdam aside, performances against the world’s best have been poor. Up against quality sides England have struggled, going down 1-0 to France, 2-0 to Spain and 1-0 to Brazil and, more alarmingly, being comprehensively outplayed on all three occasions.

Whilst the Italian might have actually worked out a way to incorporate Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard in the same team, England look far from blessed with talent in other areas. Capello has a real goalkeeping headache as neither Robert Green nor Ben Foster has established themselves at international level and with David James old enough to be Foster’s dad there is no clear first choice stopper.

Considering Spain have the luxury of calling on the likes of Fernando Torres, David Villa and Dani Guiza, England also look surprisingly lightweight up front. Other than Wayne Rooney, the Three Lions really don’t have a top class forward and with Plan B’s likely to include Peter Crouch, Emile Heskey and Jermain Defoe, it hardly fills you with great confidence. Michael Owen is 11/4 to make the squad and if I were Capello I’d take a chance on the experienced frontman to be used as an impact substitute when chasing a game.

One of the most startling conclusions of the defeat to Brazil was how one-dimensional and unimaginative England were in the attacking third. There didn’t seem to be anyone capable of a flash of skill to unpick a strong defence and that is an area where England will have to improve. The return of Joe Cole might help (although quite where Capello will accommodate Cole in his system I am not sure) and it is also why the lack of a foil for Rooney’s talent is so problematic. Cole is a tempting 4/6 shot to make Capello’s squad.

So, with all these headaches facing Capello, how are England the 6/1 third favourites for the World Cup? The Three Lions are rated as more likely to win the tournament than Argentina, Germany, Holland, Italy and France. Is that really as likely as the bookies would have you believe?

Well, look at the team Capello can select. Terry, Ferdinand, Cole, Gerrard, Lampard, Rooney - all of whom would get into most international sides in the world. Add to that the experience of Gareth Barry, Wes Brown, Glen Johnson, Joe Cole, David Beckham, Owen Hargreaves and Michael Carrick and you have a very strong squad. You then have exciting youthful talent of the likes of James Milner, Theo Walcott, Ashley Young and Aaron Lennon and so, on paper, England look pretty formidable.

Another factor in England’s favour is that they don’t have the problem of the climate. At successive international tournaments played either in searing heat or humidity England have wilted in the conditions but a South African June is going to be much more like an English autumn than a Brazilian summer. Whilst that won’t necessarily be an advantage to England they certainly won’t be a disadvantage as they so often are in exotic, humid climates.

England sit seventh in the FIFA world rankings which, if that were to translate to World Cup performance, would see them go out in the quarter finals. Bearing in mind that they went out at that stage in both 2006 and 2002, it could be argued that England are performing exactly to their ‘seeding’ in the World Cup. Considering the footballing lessons Capello’s men have been taught by Spain and Brazil in recent months I think that only a significant improvement in form (or a fortunate draw) will see England progress beyond the quarter final stage for the first time since 1990.

Football Betting - World Cup Betting

North West derbies abound in the Premier League this weekend as sides from either end of the East Lancs Road face up in two mouthwatering televised fixtures.

Manchester City travel west to a horribly out of form Liverpool side looking to arrest their unexpected decline. One win in the last nine games, an exit from the Champions League beckoning and a squad that suddenly looks paper thin have left Rafa Benitez looking vulnerable although the Liverpool boss believes victory on Saturday will kick-start the Reds season.

Mark Hughes’ side have hit the skids after a promising start and although the mischievous amongst us would like to see an away win, I think it’s about time Liverpool finally pulled a performance out of the bag.

Heading in the other direction on Saturday are Everton who face Manchester United at Old Trafford. Neither team has hit the heights over recent weeks; so whilst United should win this, it may be closer than it looks.

Sunday’s fare is pretty unglamorous with Bolton Wanderers hosting Blackburn Rovers and Stoke City at home to Portsmouth. Tony Pulis’ side are good value at evens to see of the bottom side in front of their passionate home support.

In the Scottish Premier, Celtic travel to Tannadice to face an in-form Dundee United side and Craig Levein’s men are a tasty 7/2 to bet the league leaders. Rangers face Kilmarnock at Ibrox.

Elsewhere, it is the FAI Cup Final as Sligo Rovers take on first division outfit Sporting Fingal at the Tallaght Stadium. The cup and a Europa League place are on offer for the winner and with Fingal only starting life in 2008 it would be a great fairy story if they could pull off an upset on Sunday.
Football Betting
 

Golf Betting

A ‘race’ that began fifty one tournaments ago in China culminates this weekend on the Earth Course at the Jameirah Golf Estates. The inaugural Race to Dubai - to be crowned Europe’s top golfer - has been an intriguing affair and four men arrive in Dubai with a chance to take the title.

Rory McIlroy’s performance in the Hong Kong Open nudged him ahead of Lee Westwood in the standings and the Irishman can become the second youngest European number One by finishing ahead of his rivals this weekend. Victories for the German Martin Kaymer or Englishman Ross Fisher can also see them crowned as champions.
Golf Betting
 

Tennis Betting

Fernando Verdasco’s performance at the Paris Masters, and quarter final defeats for Robin Soderling and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga handed the Spaniard the final qualifying place for the prestigious ATP World Tour Finals in London beginning this weekend.

Verdasco joins Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal, Juan Martin del Potro, Novak Djokovic, Nikolay Davydenko and Andy Roddick at the O2 Arena for what should be a scintillating week of tennis. The form and fitness of the leading stars has been in question over recent weeks and, considering he performed for us when tipped last week, I’m backing Djokovic to retain the title he won last November.
Tennis Betting
 

Rugby Betting

Watching Martin Johnson sitting with his head in his hands trying to avoid having to observe eighty minutes of the worst international rugby union I have ever seen didn’t inspire much confidence that England are building towards a team that can challenge for the 2011 World Cup. One second half score was enough to beat a side containing four amateur players and things are going to get a whole lot tougher for Johnson and his men on Saturday when New Zealand come to Twickenham.

Ireland battled well to draw with Australia on Sunday and should have an easier time of it against Fiji on Saturday as they prepare to face the Springboks in what should be the game of the series in a fortnight’s time. The Wallabies face Scotland in an intriguing match at Murrayfield.

France kicked off their autumn international campaign with a fine win over South Africa and should be too strong for Samoa. The World Champions will hope to bounce back with a good performance against Italy and Wales should see off Argentina in Cardiff.

Rugby Betting
 

Cricket Betting

England seemed to be progressing well in South Africa with some good victories over talented franchise sides, players in good form and a Twenty20 win over the World Cup semi-finalists. Then, along came the old England we know and love as they were utterly humiliated in the second Twenty20 match.

A five match ‘one day’ series starts this Friday in Johannesburg and continues at Centurion on Sunday. After a series thumping at the hands of Australia, the tourists found some one day form in the ICC Champions Trophy and even beat South Africa along the way. England remain brittle in the limited overs version of the game however, and the 9/4 available on South Africa to win the series 4-1 looks like good value.
Cricket Betting
 

Horse Racing Betting

Haydock’s Betfair Chase is always a great spectacle as the grade One three mile race attracts almost all the leading top staying chasers in Britain and Ireland. The match-up between Kauto Star and Notre Pere should be worth watching and with the likes of Madison du Berlais and Barbers Shop also in the field it promises to be a great race.

The Newton Novices’ Hurdle and Timeform Betfair ‘Racing Club’ Fixed Brush Handicap Hurdle support the main event.

Elsewhere there is a good card at Ascot featuring the Coral Scot Hurdle and Amlin 1965 chase.
Horse Racing Betting

Ireland need to turn around a one goal deficit against France if they are to reach only their second major finals since 1994. A second-half Nicolas Anelka strike was enough to give the French victory in Dublin on Saturday and it means Giovanni Trapattoni’s men must score in the Stade de France.

Six of the last 10 Ireland matches have ended all square and they only managed to score more than once in one World Cup qualifier (a 2-1 win in the opening group game against Georgia).

Robbie Keane leads the Irish scoring charts in qualifying with five goals to his name - one more than French duo Andre-Pierre Gignac and Thierry Henry who have four a piece. You can get9/1 on Keane to open the scoring in Paris although and 11/1 on a 1-0 win to the Irish which would take the game to extra-time.

The French do seem to have a hoodoo over Ireland though. Trapattoni’s men have lost just two qualifying games since 2005, and both were 1-0 defeats to Raymond Domenech’s France side. Franceare 4/1 to make it three in a row and snatch a 1-0 win.

ElsewhereRussia take a slender 2-1 lead to Sloveniathanks to a brace from Everton midfielder Diniyar Bilyaletdinov. Guus Hiddink’s men have scored in all but one of their last 13 games and you would expect a goal to be enough to see them book their spot in next summer’s World Cup.

Russia’s captain and star man, Andrei Arshavin has shown the Premier League he has the ability to turn a game and I would take the 13/2 on him to be the first goalscorer. Slovenia scored 12 goals at home during qualifying so the 1-1 draw at 9/2 might be worth taking.

In another close encounter Portugalhold a 1-0 lead over Bosnia-Herzegovina after a Brune Alves goal in Lisbon. Bosnia racked up 16 goals at home in the qualifyicationswith Wolfsburg strikerEdin Dkezo leading the way with nine goals. You can get 6/1 on Dkezo to open the scoring in Zenica.

Portugal suffered just one defeat in qualifying (a 3-2 defeat at home to Denmark) but played out three 0-0 draws and managed just 17 goals from their 10 matches. I fancy Bosnia to take the game to their more illustrious hosts and a2-0 home win is my fancy at 14/1.

The final play-off qualifier sees Euro 2004 winners Greece travel to Ukraine. Since their dramatic and unexpected victory in Portugal the Greeks have failed to build upon this triumph and their hopes of reaching South Africa hang by a thread following a 0-0 draw in Athens on Saturday.

Ukraine finished runners-up to England in group six and are unbeaten at home in qualifying including a 0-0 draw with Croatia and a 1-0 win over Fabio Capello’s side.

I expect thehosts to come through this test with a 3-1 win priced at 16/1 and Andrei Shevchenko to open the scoring at 5/1.

Football Betting - International Match Betting

You know the jumps season is in full swing when the Paddy Power November meeting is on. The Paddy Power Gold Cup is the weekend’s biggest race with the winner scooping the £85,000 first prize. Uttoxeter, Wetherby and Punchestown also host jumps racing. Lingfield and Wolverhampton keep flat racing ticking over during the winter baron spell.

In the big race at Cheltenham, The Paddy Power Gold Cup I fancy 20-1 shot According To Pete. He has run 3 times on this course with form figures reading 2 3 and 5. He has a lot of things going for him today, a nice racing weight, trainer form and a very satisfactory flat run as a prep. At 20s he is an Each Way selection.

In the first at Prestbury Park (12:50), the Irish have a raider in Roseka. Trained by the ‘unknown’ Kevin O’Donnell, Roseka has run with credit every time he’s jumped a hurdle; winning twice and finishing second to the useful Golan Go. The latter of those wins coming at the expense of Chebona Bula who has since gone on to score. The favourite, under Mccoy, is worth taking on under a heavy weight. An Each Way certainty.

In the second race at Cheltenham, Weird Al runs for the flying stable of Evan Williams. This horse went into my notebook the last day he won at Warwick. He won very nicely in testing conditions beating Tisfreetodream and Midnight sail, both very decent horses. With his size and scope he was always going to make a better chaser and I really believe the sky’s the limit for this son of Accordion.

The fact that Noel Fehily goes to Uttoxeter and not Cheltenham is very much of interest to me. Fehily is one of the most underrated jockeys in England in my opinion. He has a great chance of racking up another winner on Cast Cada in 13:05. Cast Cada ran very well over the larger obstacles two weeks ago behind a decent horse of Oliver Sherwood’s. He had a very decent mark of 130 over hurdles and the fact that he goes chasing, we should expect more to come.

At Lingfield Penangdouble O One will take the world of beating in the 13:00 maiden. Running very green early on in a decent maiden he came home like the proverbial train. To be honest I can’t see this horse losing. GET ON!!

Later tonight at Wolverhampton Huroof goes for the still flying boys in blue, Godolphin. The two year daughter of Pivotal has run in two of the nicer maidens this year and run with great credit. Drawn well in 7 and after an 83 day break (which is sure to have let her strengthen and sharpen up) she should take all the beating.

Horse Racing Betting - Horse Racing Results