NRL Round 1

The 2010 NRL Season kicks off this Friday night for another big season. The fixture gods have smiled with some HUGE games to open the round. They don’t come much bigger than Parramatta v St George, two teams who had premiership hopes shattered last year. But hang on, it does get bigger! South Sydney and Sydney clash on Sunday, this is always a huge clash.

The Broncos host the Cowboys in the Queensland Derby. Expect some brawls here cause these two are bitter rivals. Rick Stone will coach his first game at the helm of Newcastle when they take on the highly fancied Bulldogs on Saturday night, meanwhile two clubs who’ve had off-field issues in Penrith and Canberra will meet on Saturday night also.

Melbourne Storm will be looking to go back to back this year and their premiership defence kicks off with a trip up to Cronulla to take on the Sharks, while Gold Coast will host the Warriors up at Skileld Park. Monday footy comes from the Sydney Football Stadium as Wests Tigers and Manly do battle.

Fixture					Venue	Date
$1.83	Brisbane			North Queensland	$2.00	SUN	Friday at 7:35pm	Discuss
$1.80	Parramatta			St George Illawarra	$2.03	ANZ	Friday at 7:35pm	Discuss
$1.25	Bulldogs			Newcastle	$4.00	ANZ	Saturday at 5:30pm	Discuss
$1.38	Penrith			Canberra	$3.05	CUA	Saturday at 7:30pm	Discuss
$2.62	Cronulla			Melbourne	$1.50	OLY	Saturday at 7:30pm	Discuss
$1.33	Gold Coast			Warriors	$3.35	SP	Sunday at 1:00pm	Discuss
$1.53	South Sydney			Sydney	$2.55	ANZ	Sunday at 3:00pm	Discuss
$1.75	Wests Tigers			Manly	$2.10	SFS	Monday at 7:00pm	Discuss

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NAB Cup: Saints v Dogs

Well we’re finally here – the Grand Final of the NAB Cup! The match will be played at 7:10pm on Saturday night at Etihad Stadium and what it means is that we’ll be one step close to the actual season proper and an end of this glorified practice match competition. It is likely this will be the last NAB Cup ever, with the entry of Gold Coast next year.

The Saints start favourite in this match at $1.82 and rightfully so. They had a super season last year, losing the real Grand Final by a narrow margin, and they don’t look to have weakened so far from what we’ve seen. Their defence is still as sound as ever, while their attack is still very potent. They will receive Nick Riewoldt and Brendon Goddard back for this game and will field a full strength squad.

The Dogs are $2.00 to win. We only need to cast our eyes back to last year’s Preliminary Final between these two sides. The Bulldogs lost by a kick and if they had of had a key forward capable of kicking multiple goals, they may well of won. Enter Barry Hall. Hall has had a sensational pre season to date winning games off his boot. He’ll be the wildcard in this match. The Dogs have ball winners everywhere and a good defence, all the ingredients to win a football game.

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Denman will be all the rage

Betting markets for this Saturday’s Futurity Stakes and next week’s Australian Guineas have been shaken up with Lloyd Williams bypassing the Futurity with exciting colt Linton in favour of taking on Denman in the Guineas.

“With Linton out of the Futurity, Typhoon Tracy is now the hot favourite at $1.60 to beat the boys yet again at Group 1 level,” said Sportsbet.com.au’s Haydn Lane.

“Linton has been installed a $5 second favourite for the Guineas. Sportsbet have eased Denman out from $1.45 to $1.55 and former Guineas second favourite Set For Fame from $4.20 to $5.50.”

Prices are subject to fluctuation.

Bet on the Australian Guineas and the Futurity Stakes at Sportsbet!

NBA Tips 23/2

There looks to be some value out there in the NBA today and we’ll be making a couple of plays. There are three games which take our fancy, so check out our tips below. If you want to place a bet, then be sure to register an account with Sportsbet, where you can claim a $300 Free Bet.

Chicago Bulls @ Washington Wizards

We’ll start with Chicago against the spread on their road trip to the new look Wizards. Both these sides were active in trade week and we believe the Bulls have strengthened their squad thanks to the addition of Hakim Warrick and Flip Murray. Casting an eye over the stats we see Chicago are 8-2 against the spread in their last ten road matches, while they have won 4 of their last 5 against the Wizards. Couple that with the fact Chicago have won 6 of their past 7 overall, beating the spread in 6 of those 7. They have been averaging 108 pts a game in their last five compared to that of 100 for the Wizards. Take Chicago -2.5 at $1.91 with Sportsbet.

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Blue Diamond Stakes Betting

The 2010 Blue Diamond Stakes will be run this Saturday at Caulfield and the fields have been announced. It is a very open field this year with no real standouts. Beneteau (3) has opened at $3.60 after two impressive wins to start his career. He won in style last Saturday at this track by two and a half lengths and the step up in distance will suit.

Star Witness (2) at $7.00 is another with 2 wins from 2 starts and will be looking to add to his one and a half length win a fortnight ago at Moonee Valley. Psychologist (13) at $8.00 is one of only three horses in the field to of won at Caulfield after a stunning four and a half lengths win here in the Blue Diamond Fillies Prelude on debut a fortnight ago. She looks the real value here.

Others that catch our eye are General Truce (1) at $26.00 who run second to favourite Beneteau in the Blue Diamond Prelude for C&G last start, and he won his two with ease before that, including a win in the Maribyrnong Plate at a whopping $61.00!! Can he repeat the dose? Succession (4) at $10.00 and Crystal Lily (11) at $9.00 also look like good place chances.

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A-League Finals: Week 1

Well, after 27 Round of action, here were are at the business end of the A-League season with the A-League Finals Series kicking off this weekend. After playing off for the minor premiership last weekend, Melbourne and Sydney go head to head again this weekend for a spot in the Preliminary Final.

In the two Semi Finals, Gold Coast and Newcastle go head to head at Skilled Park, while Wellington Phoenix play their first ever finals match when they host the Perth Glory, also in their first finals match.

We’ll be previewing the round ahead later this week so be sure to check back for our betting preview including tips, odds and more. Remember, get a $300 Free Bet for the A-League Finals when registering a new account at Sportsbet!!

• Melbourne Victory v Sydney FC
  Major Semi Final – Feb 18th at 7:30pm, Etihad Stadium
  
• Gold Coast United v Newcastle Jets
  Semi Final 1 – Feb 20th at 7:00pm, Skilled Park
  
• Wellington Phoenix v Perth Glory
  Semi Final 2 – Feb 21st at 5:00pm, Westpac Stadium

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2010 NAB Cup Betting

AFL is officially back this Friday night with the return of the Pre Season NAB Cup competition. This year the opening round will be competed over a fortnight, with four matches this weekend and the remaining four matches the weekend after.

Sadly enough, this will be the last ever NAB Cup, as the introduction of Gold Coast FC next season will mean 17 teams in the competition and a 24 round Home & Away season, rather than 22 rounds.

Below are our tips for this weekend’s matches. At time of writing, the odds have not been quoted yet, but bookmark this post and return closer to match tiem to view the latest odds and our tips.

West Coast v Essendon (Subiaco, Friday Night)

Despite finishing towards the bottom last year, the Eagles finished last season like a freight train and have been installed as $1.52 favourites against the Bombers, who are $2.50 to win. The Eagles have a very strong young list and an exciting midfield, and they will make it tough going for an Essendon side who usually don’t treat the NAB Cup too seriously. Look at taking the Eagles to win at $1.52, or find value on the line. Bet Now!

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William Reid Stakes betting

The 2010 William Reid Stakes will be run again this Saturday at Moonee Valley racecourse. The fields have been released and it is undefeated Black Caviar who is starting as a short priced favourite, $1.75 on early markets at Sportsbet.

This super young mare has won all of her five starts so far, but it’s the ease of which she has won which has really caught the eye. Four of her five wins have been over this distance and she has won twice at the Valley. Lightning Stakes winner Nicconi is second favourite after a stunning win last start. He has won two of three at the Valley as well as a third and will be tough to beat.

Others that look a chance to be in the money include Lightning Stakes runner up Wanted from the same stable as favourite Black Caviar, course and distance winner Light Fantastic, as well as Roman Consul winner Shellscrape, who ran an impressive third in the Lightning Stakes last start.

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Sportsbet is the place to bet for Saturday’s CF Orr Stakes with their special Orrsome Money Back Bet, meaning Sportsbet members have a chance to get their money back in the big race.

Simply back a horse to Win or Place in the CF Orr Stakes and if your horse runs second, Sportsbet will refund your stake as cash straight back to your account!

But that aint all, if you register an account at Sportsbet through this Blog, you qualify for an exclusive $300 Free Bet which you can use on absolutely any market. Click the banner below for details on how to claim.

Twenty20 - Australia v Pakistan

Australia play hosts to Pakistan in the first International Twenty20 match of the summer in what will be a packed house at the MCG on Friday night. Australia has been installed as $1.42 favourites with online Australian bookmaker Sportsbet, with Pakistan quoted at $2.85.

The Aussies have clean swept Pakistan so far this year winning all three test matches, then winning the One Day series 5-0, so the $1.42 on offer could be value. Pakistan is the reigning Twenty20 World Cup champions, but it is very hard to see them coming away from this match with anything other than a loss.

The thirteen man squads were announced on Wednesday and the Aussies have brought in six new players from the One Day squad, most notable quick bowler Shaun Tait recalled, as well as two debutants in Travis Birt and Steve Smith who appear to have big futures. The Aussies have selected a specialist Twenty20 squad and should get off to a flying start with hard hitting David Warner. It is a deep batting list with quality bowlers, who will cause Pakistan issues.

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