Home and Away: Back the Welsh to crack Strach

Bet 1: Wales (AWAY) @ 4.6
Bet 2: Uruguay (HOME) @ 1.64

Jonno Turner looks at international action taking place in Europe and South America as he compiles two picks to kick start the weekend in style.

We're off to Scotland for our penultimate pick of the week - as Gordon Strachan's side welcome Wales to Hampden Park in the home boss' first competitive game as manager.

The Scots have won just two of their last half a dozen outings, and will be looking to avenge a 2-1 loss to the Welsh in this reverse fixture back in October.

That leaves Strachan's side sitting bottom of their World Cup qualifying group, having secured just two points from their opening four games.

And having laboured to draws against Serbia and Macedonia on their own patch, the Scottish faithful will be desperate to see their side put in a positive performance here.

Wales travel north in decent form having won two of their last three - but have been a little off-colour on the road of late, and that could explain the big price available on Chris Coleman's side.

The Red Dragons are also faltering in the qualifying group, and sit one place above their hosts, with a point more in the bag - but those victories will have given them some momentum ahead of this clash.

History certainly favours the visitors, and they have not lost to the Scottish since 1984 - and, importantly, they have Gareth Bale fit for this tie.

The Welsh wizard needs no introduction, but as the only genuine world class player on the pitch this evening, he is likely to be instrumental in the outcome of the game. It will be interesting to see how the Scots cope with his ability, following a media storm this week when Dundee boss John Brown encouraged his countrymen to 'take his legs off'.

With a draw no good to either side, this promises to be an exciting game, and I think that Coleman's side are excellent value for the win here.

A win here, and another against Croatia on Tuesday, could revive their slim World Cup campaign hopes - and I don't think they will waste the opportunity to put three more points towards that total this evening.

Bet 1: Wales (AWAY) @ 4.6

Off to slightly warmer climes now for our final selection of the day - as Uruguay look to extend their impressive home form in a World Cup qualifying clash with Paraguay.

Oscar Tabarez's side go into this clash on the back of some excellent results in front of their own fans, and are unbeaten in 11 outings, which will boost confidence in the Charruas camp.

The hosts currently sit fifth in their mini-league - and desperately need a win here in order to heap pressure on Venezuela, who are immediately above them, and face a tricky tie to Argentina tomorrow.

Tabarez has seen his charges collect most of their points so far on their own patch, and they will be keen to take advantage of another opportunity here, with an away trip to Chile on the horizon.

Visitors Paraguay go into this clash having won three on the bounce - but they have been suffering from travel sickness of late, and their form on the road has been miserable.

Six losses from their last seven away from home suggests that Gerardo Pelusso's side may struggle in this one, and they sit bottom of the qualifying group with just seven points from nine games.

Fifteen goals shipped from their last seven on the road indicates that the Guaranies have weaknesses in their backline, and that could play a key part in the outcome of this clash, with Uruguay full of vigour - and having smashed a whopping 17 goals in their last six at home.

Bet 2: Uruguay (HOME) @ 1.64

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Racing News: Teaforthree to target Welsh National

Teaforthree's front-running style should be perfectly suited to a race of this nature...

Rebecca Curtis has recently stated that her stable star, Teaforthree, will be aimed at next season's Welsh Grand National, over three miles and five furlongs at Chepstow in December...

Teaforthree demonstrated stamina to be his forte in last month's National Hunt Challenge Cup, defeating Harry the Viking by two lengths in the four mile amateur race at the Cheltenham Festival.

That victory provided Curtis with her first winner at the Cheltenham Festival and it now seems she wants to land her first National prize with the same horse.

The Chepstow course can catch a lot of horses out, especially in mid winter, but Teaforthree has won there twice before, producing his best Timeform rating of 145 on each occasion, and he looks a superb National candidate at this stage.

His front-running style should be perfectly suited to a race of this nature and his jumping, good attitude and willingness to respond to pressure are all key attributes likely to hold him in good stead.

There is also a chance that Teaforthree runs in next season's Aintree National, for which he is currently trading at (36.035/1) on Betfair.

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Welsh Open Snooker Betting: Ding and Robertson with every chance

Snooker / David Hendon / 13 February 2011 / Leave a Comment

Ding Junhui has finally settled in the UK and looks happy with his life and his game

"Ding seems happy in himself right now. When he first moved to the UK he found it hard to settle, understandably so – how many British players would find it easy to adopt to living in China? Now, the 23 year-old has found a good balance in his life. He still practises hard in Sheffield but has found himself a girlfriend and seems much more relaxed in general."

This is a tournament that should be won by one of the big guns. A good analysis of the draw and an understanding of the format gives us a good idea of which of them are well worth backing, says David Hendon.

Another week, another tournament, another new format. The first two rounds of the Welsh Open are best of seven frames with no intervals. In theory this makes the top seeds more susceptible to defeat but the same was said about the World Open earlier this season - played over a best-of-five sprint - and the semi-finals featured four world champions with the trophy going to reigning Crucible king Neil Robertson.

Whatever the format, top level snooker is ultimately a test of nerve just as much as it is a test of skill. Under pressure, the best players hold it together and therefore there is no reason to suggest the Newport title won't go to one of the usual suspects.

The draw looks unbalanced. John Higgins, Ronnie O'Sullivan and Shaun Murphy are all in the top quarter, along with Ricky Walden, Ryan Day and Matthew Stevens (and Jimmy White for that matter). This is a brutal section and my advice is just to leave them to it.

Ding Junhui is in what looks a far kinder quarter. The Chinese, who won the Wembley Masters last month, starts off against Marcus Campbell, a tough, determined Scot but a player who has rarely done the business on TV. Ding seems happy in himself right now. When he first moved to the UK he found it hard to settle, understandably so - how many British players would find it easy to adopt to living in China? Now, the 23 year-old has found a good balance in his life. He still practises hard in Sheffield but has found himself a girlfriend and seems much more relaxed in general. He played superbly at Wembley and didn't do much wrong at the German Masters in Berlin earlier this month before being undone by a tactically superior Mark Selby in the quarter-finals.

His main threats in his quarter are Ali Carter - who has done little of note since winning the Shanghai Masters last September - and Mark Allen, who followed up semi-final appearances in the UK Championship and Masters with a surprise first round defeat to Joe Swail in Germany. Ding thus avoids the really big hitters until at least the semi-finals.

Robertson's preparation was so bad for Berlin that the Aussie will surely want to make amends at an event he won in 2007. Robertson is more Frank Spencer than John Spencer when it comes to getting to tournaments. Already this season he arrived for a Premier League match only five minutes before it began. At the UK Championship he misread his match time and had to be phoned at his hotel by the tournament director ten minutes before he was due to break off. Before Germany he lost his passport, had to fly a day later than intended, arrived less than an hour before his match and lost.

But there is no problem with Roberton's timing on the table and as long as he actually turns up, he should do for veteran Nigel Bond in the first round, after which he would have as good a chance as anyone.

All the qualifiers are experienced campaigners with one glaring exception. Jack Lisowski, 19, is in his first season and has made an excellent start. He qualified for Berlin and won three matches last week to reach Newport where his reward is a TV debut against the game's top ranked player, Higgins. Logic dictates that young Lisowski should freeze and be well beaten by the three times world champion but a shock is not completely out of the question. OK, he has no experience of the TV set-up but, having interviewed him a number of times, I'm impressed by his intelligence and general attitude. He wants to learn from all the new experiences he is having on the tour and the pressure will be on Higgins. Sadly, the Scot had to pull out of the German Masters after his father, John senior, lost his battle with cancer. Obviously, this personal trauma will have meant that practising has been the last thing on Higgins's mind.

Seeds looking vulnerable include Carter, who could come unstuck against Barry Hawkins, a much better player than his record suggests, and Graeme Dott, who loathes short matches and who faces Jamie Burnett, runner-up in this season's Shanghai Masters.

Recommended Bets:

Back Ding Junhui to win the Welsh Open at [9.4]; Back Neil Robertson to win the Welsh Open at [11.0].

Back Barry Hawkins to beat Ali Carter at [2.5]; Back Jamie Burnett to beat Graeme Dott at [2.6].

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