The Goalscorer Gamble: Back Bony gem to shine brightly

"Grabban arrived at Carrow Road after a debut season in the division with Bournemouth in which he scored 22 goals in 44 appearances."

Back Grabban to score at 3.02/1.

Dan Fitch is back again with five more goalscorer tips and fancies Wilfried Bony to continue his hot Premier League form when Swansea face Burnley.

Last week the Goalscorer Gamble column started the new season semi-successfully, as Wayne Rooney and Anthony Stokes both scored. If Daniel Sturridge had just found the good grace to notch the first goal rather than the last for Liverpool, then we would now be sitting upon a vast opening weekend profit.

Instead we go in search of it this weekend and we begin in the Premier League with Swansea's game with Burnley. The Swans got off to a terrific start to the season with a 2-1 victory at Old Trafford and will be feeling confident ahead of the visit of promoted Burnley. 

Wilfried Bony is the player that we're interested in, after a debut season in which he scored 25 goals in 48 games for Swansea. Bony comes into the new season on the back of a personally successful World Cup and when you throw in the fact that he plundered most of his goals for Swansea at home, the likely odds of 2.47/5 for him to score against a side adapting to the top flight, must surely be snapped up.

Bony may have scored 16 Premier League goals last season but he was still only the second most potent Ivorian goalscorer. The man ahead of him was Manchester City's Yaya Toure, who powered his side towards the title with 20 goals from midfield.

Toure has had a unsettled summer since City wrapped up that title, as he moaned about his club forgetting his birthday in an unconventional ploy to get one final big money move. The transfer never materialised and now Toure has no choice but to settle down and start playing for City again. With that in mind, the odds of 8.07/1 for Toure to score first are worth a punt for a player that takes City's penalties and free-kicks.

We stay in England but drop down a division to focus on the East Anglian derby between Ipswich and Norwich. This game traditionally makes for a surprisingly fiery affair given that the town of Ipswich is nowhere near the city of Norwich, though having lived in both Suffolk and Norwich as a child I can confirm that there's not much more to do in either county other than sit and ruminate on long-held grudges.

The two sides have had contrasting starts to the season. Ipswich picked up an opening day win against Fulham, before floundering in their subsequent outings, while Norwich lost their opener to Wolves, only to bounce back with impressive wins over Watford and Blackburn. 

Those Norwich wins were inspired by their new striker Lewis Grabban, who is currently the Championship's top scorer with three goals. Grabban arrived at Carrow Road after a debut season in the division with Bournemouth in which he scored 22 goals in 44 appearances. The 26-year old enjoyed a good pre-season and seems to have taken his form into the new campaign, so back him at odds of 3.02/1 to add to his tally.

Another unlikely grudge match takes place in Scotland this weekend, as Inverness Caledonian Thistle meet Celtic in a top of the table clash. Once upon a time there was enough daylight between the sides to inspire tabloid headline writers when Cally went ballistic, but now it is the underdogs that currently lead the Premiership.

For how long is another matter, with Celtic having scored nine goals and conceded just one in their opening two games. Anthony Stokes has scored in both games and having delivered for us last weekend, we'll keep faith by tipping him to score the first goal at likely odds of 5.59/2.

The Scottish season might be well under way but over in Germany things are just kicking off in the Bundesliga. Borussia Dortmund will go into the season in confident form, after enjoying a 2-0 win over Bayern Munich in the Super Cup a couple of weeks ago.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was on target that day and scored two more last weekend as Dortmund beat Stuttgarter Kickers 4-1 in the cup. With Robert Lewandowski departed, this could be Aubameyang's season to shine.

Dortmund face tough opposition at home today against Bayer Leverkusen, but that only serves to bump up Aubameyang's price to score. Back him at a probable price of 2.56/4 to find the net.

Recommended Bets
Best Bet: Back Bony to score at 2.47/5
Back Toure to score first at 8.07/1
Back Grabban to score at 3.02/1
Back Stokes to score first at 5.59/2
Back Aubameyang to score at 2.56/4

Amazon Sports Center

Follow The Money: Lancelot being backed to shine at York

Product reviews and advice for best reference

Find Me a 100 Winner: Golden Graham to shine in Texas

Find Me A 100 Winner / Steven Rawlings / 27 March 2012 / Leave a Comment

Graham DeLaet – Can he contend again in Texas

“Graham DeLaet’s an immense talent with obvious course form and he could just give us a run for our money at a very big price.”

With Paul Krishnamurty resting up ahead of next week's US Masters, Steve Rawlings, aka The Punter, continues the search for a monster-priced winner

With a profit of 52 units already this year, stepping into Paul's shoes, even just for one week, is no envious task. Even though he hasn't had a winner yet in 2012, he's still amassed a very tidy sum, demonstrating the power of the pink button. This column is all about getting big-priced selections into contention and making profits by laying them back. I've picked out one selection at each of the week's two events in an attempt to do just that.

With a new venue and a weak looking field, a shock winner of the Sicilian Open is certainly not out of the question and I fancy James Morrison is the best priced outsider in the field. Let's hope he's the one to produce the surprise.

The 2010 Madeira Islands Open winner enjoyed a fair finish to last season, contending in a number of events, with a third placed finish at the Iskandar Johor Open in November the highlight. He's started 2012 slowly but he showed an upturn in fortunes at last week's Tophee Hassan II where after a dreadful start (nine over par through just six holes!), he played quite well.

I fancy this week's links course will suit James and at [160.0] he looks over-priced.

At the Shell Houston Open I'm going to rely on someone who very nearly pulled off a monster win for me two years ago.

Graham DeLaet played most of the 2010 season with a bulging disc but still managed third place here (missing out on the playoff by just one stroke). The back injury worsened at the end of the year when the disc became herniated. Surgery last January virtually put paid to 2011 in its entirety and only now is he starting to play with regularity.

He's an immense talent with obvious course form and he could just give us a run for our money at a very big price.

Recommended Bets
Sicilian Open
1u James Morrison @ [160.0]
Place order to lay 10u @ [10.0]
Place order to lay 20u @ [3.0]

Shell Houston Open
1u Graham DeLaet @ [230.0]
Place order to lay 10u @ [10.0]
Place order to lay 20u @ [3.0]

Updated 2012 Stats: +52 units

Paul Krishnamurty assesses two players who, before failing last weekend, had previously enjoyed runs of promising form. Our man is backing them to bounce back at long odds......

Most of the Open de Andalucia market principals have spent the last few weeks labouring in the US making this tournament one for the outsiders. Paul Krishnamurty picks three to take at triple-figure odds...

It's been a while since we saw a long odds winner at the WGC-Cadillac Championship. So what makes Paul Krishnamurty think this week's event could reverse the trend?...

Amazon Sports Center

Follow The Money: Soleil to shine at Taunton?

Follow the Money / Follow The Money / 01 March 2012 / Leave a Comment

Will you back Soleil D'avril at Taunton (above)?

"Soleil D’avril has been well supported, moving in to [4.4] from [5.3]."

Today's Follow The Money movers come from Southwell, Ludlow and Taunton.

We start with Southwell's 14:20 mile handicap where Samasana has been weak, moving out to [2.48] from [1.87]. The selection arrives in fine form, having won her last three starts. However, she is now 17lbs higher than when first winning and also steps up in class. With a couple of in-form rivals holding good claims in the line up, punters are looking to get this short priced favourite beat.

In Ludlow's 16:00 staying handicap chase there's been a good move for Maraafeq, moving from [11.5] in to [4.8]. This selection has slipped to a very reasonable handicap mark and was a course and distance winner last season. Wearing first time cheekpieces and representing the in form Venetia Williams, he also receives plenty of weight from all of his rivals. He has run well fresh before so he should not be rusty after a near three month absence and a much improved run looks likely later this afternoon.

Finally, in Taunton's 16:10 handicap hurlde, Soleil D'avril has been well supported, moving in to [4.4] from [5.3]. This six-year-old ran his best race over hurdles last time out when runner up in a similar race and is now just 1lb higher. With his stable in good form, there should be more to come now and this race looks easier on paper. He looks set to get his head in front later today.

Recommended Bets
Lay Samasana @ [2.48] Southwell 14:20
Back Maraafeq @ [4.8] Ludlow 16:00
Back Soleil D'avril @ [4.4] Taunton 16:10

Today's FTM selections come from the cards at Folkestone and Southwell....

Today's movers come from Catterick and Lingfield....

Welcome to follow the money for Monday February 27. Today's movers are from the cards at Plumpton and Wolverhampton....

Amazon Sports Center

AT & T Pebble Beach National: Mallinger to shine for The Punter

The Punter / Steven Rawlings / 07 February 2012 / Leave a Comment

John Mallinger – The Punter’s idea of the best value this week

“Mallinger already has plenty of form at Pebble. He finished third in each of his first two attempts in this event in 2007 and 2008 and he won the Callaway Golf Pebble Beach Invitational here in 2010.”

Steve runs the rule over this week's US PGA Tour event, what's it going to take to win at Pebble?

Tournament
The AT & T Pebble Beach National is a Pro-am staged over three courses. This will be the 71st staging.

Venue
Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach, California

Course Details
Pebble Beach (host course), par 72, 6816 yards, stroke average in 2011 - 72.16

Spyglass Hill par 72, 6858 yards, stroke average in 2011 - 72.43

Monterey Peninsula, par 70, 6838 yards, stroke average in 2011 - 69.84

The field will play all three courses over the first three days before the final round will played out at Pebble. Monterey played the easiest of the three last year and that could be the place to bag a really low score.

Useful Sites

Weather
Course Guides
Official Event Site

TV Coverage
Live on Sky Sports all four days, 8.00pm on Thursday and Friday and 6.00pm on Saturday and Sunday.

Last Five Winners
2011 - D.A Points -15
2010 - Dustin Johnson -16
2009 - Dustin Johnson -15 (54 holes)
2008 - Steve Lowery -10 (playoff)
2007 - Phil Mickelson -20

Typical Winner
With rounds taking that bit longer and with the need to interact with your amateur partner, the experienced and patient pros tend to prosper. Although big hitters Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson have won four of the last seven renewals, length isn't a prerequisite. You need a bit of luck with the weather - Spyglass is tree-lined and largely protected from the wind so anyone drawn there on a day that the wind howls at the two coastal tracks will have a considerable advantage. That said, the forecast this year suggests light winds and fine weather. One quirky stat of note - four of the last five winners was leading after day one.

Market leaders
Tiger Woods makes his 2012 PGA Tour debut and he heads the market at [6.6]. Paul Krishnamurty has looked at his prospects and I have to agree with him, he doesn't look like a value play at his current price.

At [22.0], Dustin Johnson will have his followers. He won back-to-back here in 2009 and 2010 but he was a long way off the pace last year, failing to break 70, finishing in a tie for 55th and you have to wonder how much of a scar was left after his infamous US Open collapse here in 2010. Given he's been pretty poor so far this term too, I'm happy to leave him alone.

The market can't split the next four, with Phil Mickelson, Nick Watney, Hunter Mahan and Rickie Fowler all trading at [26.0].

Selections
It takes a bit of a leap of faith to side with Mickelson after his first two performances this year but that's precisely what I've done. Although, on close inspection of last week's tied 26th in Phoenix there are grounds for optimism. He ranked 6th for Scrambling and 13th for putting so his short game could just be getting there and besides, Lefty has often found form from nowhere. He'd missed the cut in Phoenix the week before he won here in 2007. He'll enjoy the benign conditions and if he can play Monterey a bit better than he did last year (shot 71) he might just surprise a few people.

John Mallinger was the first player I backed this week. He sat out last week's event and missed the cut at the Farmers Insurance the week before, but he could well have been suffering from a bit of a hangover following his near miss at the Humana Challenge, where he finished in a tie for second. Heralding from California, he already has plenty of form at Pebble. He finished third in each of his first two attempts in this event in 2007 and 2008 and he won the Callaway Golf Pebble Beach Invitational here in 2010. Kiss of death alert, he was my idea of the best value in the field.

It's been a long, long time since I last put any money on Jeff Maggert but he's injury-free and in fine form so far this season. He's a duel runner-up of the event (1994 and 2004) and he quite obviously ticks the experienced pro box.

Last up is Paul's Find Me A 100 Winner, Daniel Chopra, who has already caused a big stir this week, making two aces in practice yesterday.

AT & T Pebble Beach National Selections:
Phil Mickelson @ [26.0]
John Mallinger @ an average of [90.0]
Jeff Maggert @ [130.0]
Daniel Chopra @ [260.0]

I'll be back on Thursday or Friday with the In-Play Blog.

Our man takes a good look at the last leg of the Middle East Swing, where Rory McIlroy's a warm order, but is he value?...

Pre-event pick Ben Crane comes up a shot shy but Steve was still happy to see Kyle Stanley win in Phoenix and he couldn't have been more impressed by Paul Lawrie's success in Qatar......

Steve takes a look at the state of play in Qatar, where he fancies a low round from someone might just nick it. And in the States, there's a warning for anyone tempted by the current leader......

Amazon Sports Center

Timeform Irish 1-2-3 Tips: Starr to shine at Leopardstown‏

Tipping / Billy Nash / 03 September 2011 / Leave a Comment

So You Think is the red-hot favourite for the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown today

"Napa Starr seems to be getting better with age and is sure to give a good account in the leopardstown.com handicap at 16:40."

So You Think is undoubtedly the star turn at Leopardstown today but we have decided to have a stab at solving the three handicaps on the supporting card...

Napa Starr seems to be getting better with age and is sure to give a good account in the leopardstown.com handicap at 16:40. Charles Byrnes's gelding looks more straightforward nowadays than he did at times in the past and ran a cracker when a fast-finishing third to Castle Bar Sling in the Cambridgeshire at the Curragh last weekend. He is 3 lb higher now but will be suited by the slightly longer trip and he has a good record at this track.

David Marnane has had a relatively quiet season by his standards but one of the high points of his year has been the emergence of Jamesie. The son of Kodiac managed only a maiden win from nine starts last year but has gone from strength to strength this year, winning handicaps at Tipperary and Fairyhouse prior to finishing a close second to Rock Critic at Galway last time. The handicapper doesn't appear to have caught up with him just yet and this race should be run to suit.

Luca Cumani doesn't run many horses in Ireland, particularly in handicaps, so the fact that he sends Mohedian Lady to contest the Autumn Fillies handicap at 19:20 is perhaps a tip in itself. However, she appeals as one that could well be overbet and one I think can go well at a bigger price is Rising Wind. Lady O'Reilly's filly has only a maiden win at Listowel to her name but has been campaigned almost exclusively at listed level since, and was set plenty to do when third to Priomhbhean at Gowran on her only previous try in a handicap. Rising Wind wasn't suited by the way things panned out at the Curragh last time and is still relatively unexposed at this sort of trip. She handles soft ground and looks capable of running into a place, at least, in a race where the emphasis should be on stamina.

Back Napa Starr in the 16:40 at Leopardstown
Back Jamesie in the 18:10 at Leopardstown
Win and Place Back Rising Wind in the 19:20 at Leopardstown

Three recommendations from the Timeform Free Form Site for a superb Saturday......

Three bets for Saturday's racing in the US......

Timeform run the rule over the six-furlong Haydock Sprint Cup......

Betfair website

Lehavot Wins But Brits Still Shine

World Series of Poker 2011 / Matthew Pitt / 06 June 2011 / Leave a Comment

The first $10,000 Championship of the 2011 World Series of Poker is done and dusted and it is Amir Lehavot who has emerged victorious to win his first bracelet and $573,456 but the tournament will also be remembered for the fact another three British players went deep and another bracelet for one of our boys cannot be far away.

This year's $10,000 Pot-Limit Hold'em Championship attracted 249 players, slightly down on the 268 of last year but still enough to create a prizepool of $2,340,600. Of the 249 who started Day 1 with high hopes only 129 survived the day with their chip stacks intact and they returned to the felt on Sunday and were whittled down to the final 27 players, which incidentally is how many players were paid out.

The final 27 was a star-studded affair with the likes of Mike "The Mouth" Matusow, Owen Crowe, Nenad Medic, McLean Karr and Steve "gboro780" Gross. However, as in the $25,000 Heads Up event that Jake Cody won a huge crowd gathered on the rail once word spread that Toby Lewis, Chris Moorman and Stephen Chidwick had made it into the money and were in with a real chance of winning a coveted gold bracelet.

Moorman was the first British player to be sent to the rail, his 18th place finish worth $25,348 and then five and a half hours after the tournament started Lewis' luck ran out. The EPT Vilamoura winner opened to 43,000 from the button, Lehavot made it 110,000 to play from the big blind and then called when Lewis re-raised all in. The Brit's JhJc was narrowly ahead of his opponent's AdQd but he was soon a massive underdog as the flop came down 4d-9d-2d giving Lehavot the nut flush. The 6c on the turn ended Lewis' tournament and when the meaningless 3c arrived on the river Lewis was eliminated in 11th place, worth $40,890.

This left Chidwick as the lone British player left in the tournament and when Michael Benvenuti, Karr and Eric Cloutier all busted out with 15 minutes of each other, Chidwick only had five more players to outlast to scoop the title. Those five became four as Nicolas Levi, a Frenchman who resides in the UK exited in sixth place when his 7d7h was beaten by the AsQd of Lehavot and just five minutes later Tommy Vinas ran into a real cooler of a hand to see him eliminated in fifth place. Vinas got into a raising war with Jarred Solomon on a 9s-Qs-7s flop which resulted in the former being all in at risk. He proudly turned over 7c7d for bottom set but was devastated when Solomon turned over 9c9d for a higher set. The turn and river were the 8h and 8c respectively and play was now four-handed.

The support for Chidwick was second to none but it was not enough as the man known as "Stevie444" in online circles was eliminated in fourth place> He managed to get his money in good with Ah9c against the KcJh of Lehavot but Lehavot was running hotter than the sun that even when the flop came down 9d-Ac-Ts the rail knew a suckout could be on the cards. The turn was the 8h, which kept Chidwick in front but gave Lehavot an open-ended straight draw, and that was completed when the Qs landed on the river. A valiant performance from Chidwick who took away $198,927 for his efforts over the three days, nice work if you can get it.

Five minutes later and the tournament reached the heads up stages as Sam Stein ran his As6d straight down the throat of the AcKs of, yes you guessed it, Lehavot. Neither player made a pair but Lehavot's king-kicker came into play and it was time for a one-on-one encounter to decide the title. Lehavot lead Solomon by 5,415,000 to 2,160,000 and it did not take him long to reduce his opponent to just a few hundred thousand chips. Then about an hour and 20 minutes into the encounter the final hand took place.

With blinds now 25,000/50,000 (there are no antes in pot limit games) Solomon made it 100,000 to play. Lehavot re-popped the action to 265,000 then quickly called as Solomon put in the rest of his stack. Solomon's AhJs would usuall be a very strong hand in heads up but not when his opponent held AsQh! The Qs-Qd-Tc flop gave Lehavot trip queens but also gave Solomon an open-ended straight but any hopes of hitting that were soon made redundant as the Td on the turn improved Lehavot to an unbeatable full house, so when the meaningless 2d hit the river it was already game over, Lehavot had become the $10,000 Pot-Limit Hold'em Championship winner.

This is the second large cash in just a few months for Lehavot as he finished fourth in the recent WPT LA Poker Classic for a cool $421,680, meaning this latest score has made him a poker millionaire!

Final table payouts

1st: Amir Lehavot: $573,456
2nd: Jarred Solomon: $354,460
3rd: Sam Stein: $264,651
4th: Stephen Chidwick: $198,927
5th: Tommy Vinas: $150,453
6th: Nicolas Levi: $114,525

Jake Cody has become only the third person in the history of poker to win a coveted Triple Crown of titles after he won the $25,000 Heads Up No-Limit Hold'em Championship event at the World Series of Poker. Cody joins...

It has been a wild first week at the World Series of Poker. Heck, it's only been half a week, really, but the number and magnitude of the stories have been so big it has seemed longer. And in fact,...

Back in April we brought you the news that at this year's World Series of Poker there were going to be three rematches of historical WSOP heads-up encounters. Johnny Chan was to take on Phil Hellmuth, Chris Moneymaker would face...

Betfair website

Michael Vaughan: Strauss and Jayawardene to shine

England Cricket / Michael Vaughan / 25 May 2011 / Leave a Comment

Mahela Jayawardene is a class act who can score heavily when set

"As for Sri Lanka, you could make a case for any of Tillekaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara or Mahela Jayawardene. They’re the class acts in this batting line-up and the ones who have previous experience of playing in conditions where the ball will swing. My preference goes for the latter of the three at [4.9]."

Michael Vaughan tells us why Andrew Strauss will be so keen to make an impact in this First Test and how Mahela Jayawardene is the obvious choice to top score for Sri Lanka in the first innings.

There will be plenty of people very keen on keeping Alastair Cook on their side after his heroics in Australia. You can't really blame them and it's pretty incredible to think that, just over a year ago, he was probably just one failure away from being dropped. The Essex man is now seen as one of the rocks in this superb England side.

After the way he batted in that England Lions Match, Eoin Morgan will be carrying some punters' money too. But my own hard-earned will be on Andrew Strauss. He'll be desperate to get this new phase of his career in which he's solely the Test captain off to the best possible start. Strauss is in pretty decent nick too, having already scored two centuries for Middlesex this season, one of which was against Sri Lanka in a warm-up match. That means he's not only had a good look at their bowling line-up, he's also taken them apart! He's the sort of captain who likes to lead by example at the top of the innings and, at [4.8], looks the outstanding choice in this market.

As for Sri Lanka, you could make a case for any of Tillekaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara or Mahela Jayawardene. They're the class acts in this batting line-up and the ones who have previous experience of playing in conditions where the ball will swing. My preference goes for the latter of the three at [4.9]. Dilshan will have the pressure of the captaincy weighing him down a bit given he's just taken up the role, not to mention the fact he'll have to face a new ball that may be moving around early on. Sangakkara bats at three so he might have to face a swinging ball too and I've seen him struggle in the past when that's been the case. I've said already that batting might get easier as the match progresses so because of his class and the fact he'll come in at four, I'm siding with Jayawardene.

Recommended Bets:

Back Andrew Strauss to be first innings top England batsman at [4.8]
Back Mahela Jayawardene to be first innings top Sri Lankan batsman at [4.9]

Michael Vaughan tells us why England were right to go with Eoin Morgan over Ravi Bopara ahead of the First Test....

Former England captain Michael Vaughan gives us his take on the challenges Sri Lanka face in this Series, why Kevin Pietersen can come good this summer and how to approach the betting for the First Test....

Betfair is delighted to announce that Michael Vaughan has signed up to become our full-time cricket ambassador....

Betfair website

Timeform Irish 1-2-3: Silver Friend to shine at Killarney

Tipping / Stuart Jones / 15 May 2011 / Leave a Comment

Sunday is the opening day of the Killarney Festival

"A smooth traveller who has few miles on the clock, Silver Friend ran a fine race in defeat on his handicap bow when third to Peak Raider at Leopardstown in February and remains capable of better".

Two meetings in Ireland this Sunday and we have selections on the Flat at Navan and over the sticks at Killarney.

Wakhan (15.15) looked a sure-fire future winner when finishing a length second to odds-on stablemate Zanughan in a maiden at Navan on debut and appears to have been found a suitable opportunity to go one better there on Sunday. He hails from a good family, is bred to appreciate this step up in trip (entered in the Derby), and it will be bitterly disappointing if he can't land this maiden enroute to bigger and better things.

The ladbrokes.com Handicap Hurdle lookes fiercely-competitive, but the unexposed Silver Friend (15.25) is on a potentially lenient mark and, with rain forecast, conditions should be ideal. A smooth traveller who has few miles on the clock, Silver Friend ran a fine race in defeat on his handicap bow when third to Peak Raider at Leopardstown in February and remains capable of better.

Apt Approach may have won at the recent Punchestown Festival but for coming to grief at the last and is capable of gaining compensation in the minor event at 16.25 if none the worse for that mishap. He's progressed into a useful chaser in recent seasons and was still a length clear of his nearest pursuer when coming to grief at Punchestown last time. Very few of the opposition come into this in much form and Apt Approach really ought to make amends.

Recommendations

back Wakhan @ 1.71 in the 15.15 at Navan
back Silver Friend @ 8.0 in the 15.25 at Killarney
back Apt Approach @ 3.2 in the 16.25 at Killarney

Timeform go through the runners for the first British Group 1 of the season for older horses......

A seven-race card over the jumps at Kilbeggan gets underway at 17:45 and we have come up with three more bets......

After two winners and a non-runner yesterday, here are three selections for Friday from Timeform's US team......

Betfair website

Timeform Irish Tips: Twinlight to shine at Fairyhouse‏

Tipping / Billy Nash / 26 April 2011 / Leave a Comment

Willie Mullins will be hoping for a big run from Twinlight at Fairyhouse

"The current crop of Irish-trained juvenile hurdlers don't look anything out of the ordinary and it is significant that Twinlight is Willie Mullins' only entry in the Champion 4-y-o Hurdle at Punchestown next week."

We have got two to back and one to lay on the final day of the Fairyhouse Easter Festival....

Drive On Jim has really come good since joining Denis Hogan and can regain the winning thread in the novice handicap chase at 16:25. He won over both fences and hurdles at Limerick's Christmas meeting before completing the hat-trick with a bit to spare in a two-and-a-half-mile hurdle at this track in the middle of January. Drive On Jim went as if still in form when fourth over an inadequate trip at Thurles when last seen in February and there is every chance that the handicapper hasn't caught up with him just yet. He hasn't many miles on the clock for one of his age, remains unexposed at this sort of trip and makes plenty of appeal in a race where recent form is thin on the ground.

Willie Mullins has done extremely well with his French imports in recent seasons and he unleashes another interesting recruit in the shape of Twinlight in the Weatherbys Ireland GSB Hurdle at 16:55. Twinlight has shown useful form over hurdles in his native land, winning a listed event at Auteuil last May and placed twice there since, including in a Grade 1 in November on his penultimate start, but his pedigree (by Mutathir out of a 7f/9f winner in Germany) suggests that he will appreciate this speed test. The current crop of Irish-trained juvenile hurdlers don't look anything out of the ordinary and it is significant that Twinlight is Willie Mullins' only entry in the Champion 4-y-o Hurdle at Punchestown next week.

Peak Raider (18:35) has improved out of all recognition this season, winning his last three starts, but he may well be overbet as a result and will need to produce a career-best effort to defy a mark fully 32 lb higher than the one he started the season from. He readily won a handicap chase over this course and distance in December before scoring in equally impressive fashion over hurdles last time, but he is effectively 15 lb higher than when last seen over the larger obstacles due to the fact that he has to compete from 5 lb out of the handicap here. Peak Raider has plenty to find on Timeform ratings and may struggle to even get placed in a race as competitive as this one.

Back Drive On Jim @ [7.2] Fairyhouse 16:25
Back Twinlight @ [3.5] Fairyhouse 16:55
Place Lay Peak Raider @ [1.82] Fairyhouse 18:35

Timeform go through the field for this intriguing seven-furlong handicap......

Three bets from around the country this afternoon, all coming on the Flat......

A small but select field for this seven-furlong minor event......

Betfair website

Champions League Results: Chelsea shine away from domestic football

Champions League / Jamie "The Pacman" Pacheco / 22 February 2011 / Leave a Comment

Easy as you like it. Nicolas Anelka jogs away after scoring his second of the night

"The second favourites, Real Madrid, are also in pole position to make the quarter-finals but it could have been even sweeter had some slack marking not allowed Bafetimbi Gomis to grab a late equaliser for tonight’s opponents Lyon."

Nicolas Anelka scored twice as Chelsea won 2-0 whilst Real secured a good draw away at Lyon.

All the talk over the past few weeks has been of Fernando Torres and his transfer fee but tonight it was the somewhat forgotten man of Chelsea FC who came up with the goods tonight against FC Copenhagen. Nicolas Anelka scored a goal either side of half-time to give Chelsea a huge 2-0 lead going into the second leg.

The mercurial Frenchman was matched at 4.9 to get on the scoresheet at anytime and showed Torres, who is yet to score in Chelsea's colours, and Didier Drogba (who started on the bench) just how to do it; the Blues had been backed at 2.1 In-Play before the opening goal of the match. A Chelsea clean sheet was matched at [2.4] whilst under 2.5 goals was backed at a high of [3.2].

They may be struggling domestically after all but kissing their Premier League chances goodbye and crashing out of the FA Cup but they're genuine contenders to win the Champions League. Their win tonight has seen them shorten to [6.6] third favourites to win the competition that Roman Abramovich is so desperate to conquer.

The second favourites, Real Madrid, are also in pole position to make the quarter-finals but it could have been even sweeter had some slack marking not allowed Bafetimbi Gomis to grab a late equaliser for tonight's opponents Lyon. Karim Benzema came off the bench to score with virtually his first touch of the ball against his old club and with time running out Real were backed at just [1.13] to beat a side that has caused them all manner of problems in this competition over the years. But equalise Lyon did which was good news for those who had backed 1-1 at [14.5]. Real are strong favourites to progress at [1.2] though the late Gomis goal may well come back to haunt them.

Cristiano Ronaldo had a decent night's work and hit the post but was well marked by Lyon's defence. The Real fans will expect an even better performance from their talisman in the second leg.

Nicolas Anelka scored twice as Chelsea won 2-0 whilst Real secured a good draw away at Lyon....

This is a Marseille side who isn't exactly at the top of their game right now. As for Manchester United, they have bundles of experience of just this sort of match. James eastham tells us where our money should be....

There might be trouble ahead for Carlo Ancelotti's off-colour Blues, says Tobias Gourlay....

Betfair website